Church Chat, Beltway Style

Here's what's coming up for the major network morning news shows today. In alphabetical order, that would be ABC, CBS, CNN, FOX and NBC. Check channels and air times for a station near you.

It's all about the Obama administration's healthcare plan, but I'm sure a couple of LGBTQ issues will come up, from hate crimes to Don't Ask, Don't Tell. And my bet is on NBC.

On ABC, Budget Committee Chairman and Democratic Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota - a key player in the health care debate - faces off against Republican South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint, who recently said Republicans should scuttle Obama on health care because it would "break him." For a good breakdown on the LGBTQ issues that should be part of the healthcare debate, see Bilerico-DC's Dan O'Neill's article on the topic.

Over at CBS, White House senior adviser David Axelrod hits the airwaves, along with Louisiana Republican Governor Bobby Jindal and Democratic Representative Representative Jim Cooper of Tennessee. Boring...

On CNN, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California and Mr. Axelrod (he does get around...) promote President Obama's health care legislation, while Republican Senator and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky - who has criticized the bill's estimated cost - gets to defend the Republican's plan. Oh, that's right - they don't have one.

At Faux News, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs gets out of the briefing room to chat with Arizona Republican Senator Jon Kyl, who spent much of last week criticizing President Obama's health care plan. My TV doesn't get Fox, except for the Simpsons.

And on NBC, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lands in Washington to talk about America's role in the world and what influence she's having on her former rival's views on everything from foreign policy to health care.

It's been the week of the big health care push. The president took to the airwaves in a prime time news conference this week and traveled to Ohio to rally public support for his health care reform overhaul.

But with four different bills in the House and Senate and political wrangling on both sides of the aisle, the president isn't going to get a bill before the August recess.

On the show this Sunday, an exclusive debate between two people who are shaping the health care debate in Congress: Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., -- who has said that health care reform could be Obama's "Waterloo."

In two exclusive interviews this Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and the top Republican in the senate, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, offer up their very different views on the future of health care reform.

Plus, we'll talk to one of President Obama's closest advisers, White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod, about health care, the economy, and the President's controversial comments on the arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates.

Fox News Sunday, as usual, spins their line-up before telling you about it.

In his prime-time news conference this week, President Obama assured Americans that health care reform is in their best interest and critical to the nation's economic health. Can the president convince a skeptical public that every American will benefit from this system? We'll get specifics from the president's top spokesman: Robert Gibbs, assistant to the president and White House press secretary.

Then, with the stakes so high for health care reform, will Congress pass legislation this year? We'll get a read from Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.

Exclusive! We'll have a live, full hour interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She's logged 100,000 miles traveling around the globe, pushing President Obama's foreign policy goals as his top diplomat. Now, fresh off her trip to Asia -- where she trading barbs with the North Koreans and warned Iran about it's nuclear ambitions -- we find out how she thinks she can influence those U.S. adversaries abroad. Plus, what influence is she having on her former political rival, President Obama, when it comes to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as domestic issues, such as health care?

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